Work

Enhanced UV-Photocatalytic Removal of Low Concentration Malachite Green Oxalate Utilizing Zinc Oxide/ Clinoptilolite Zeolite Nanocomposite in Acidic Solution: mechanism and kinetic study

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: The effective removal of cationic dyes from industrial wastewater represents a main environmental challenge today because of their structure complexity, inherent toxicity, in addition to their persistence against traditional treatment techniques. In this work, a Zinc Oxide /natural zeolite nanocomposite was successfully synthesized and evaluated for its photocatalytic degradation of the Malachite Green Oxalate (MGO) at trace concentration in acidic solution under UV irradiation. Comprehensive physicochemical characterization tests as (XRD, FTIR, SEM–EDX, BET, Photoluminescence and UV–VIS DRS) were performed. The XRD results confirmed the successful synthesis of wurtzite ZnO on the high crystallinity porous surface of zeolite.While, SEM revealed anchoring of ZnO nanoparticle on natural zeolite surface. Photocatalytic experiments were conducted to investigate the effects of various parameters including pH, initial MGO dye concentration, and irradiation power, at constant exposure time and low adsorbent dosage. The best experimental parameters were obtained as: 100 W of power supplied, 10 ppm MGO concentration, pH = 4 besides time exposure 120 min. and adsorbent dose (1 g/L) with removal percent 100%. The kinetic investigation confirmed the degradation process followed a pseudo-second order model (k= 0.0018, R 2 = 95.1%) indicating to the surface controlled chemisorption and photocatalytic oxidation that working simultaneously as synergic dual functions composite. The reusability tests confirmed the powerful catalytic performance of this photocatalyst with removal efficiencies remaining above 87% after five successive cycles (98%, 95%, 92%, 89%, 87% respectively). The results showed the high efficiency and structural stability of ZnO/ natural zeolite nanocomposite in the acidic wastewater.

Source: South African Journal of Chemical Engineering

DOI: 10.1016/j.sajce.2026.100934

Authors: Marwa F. Abdul Jabbar, Najwa Saber Majeed, Watheq Kareem Salih

Institutions: Nahrain University, University of Baghdad, Scientific Research Commission

Language: English

Topic: Advanced Photocatalysis Techniques

Subfield: Renewable Energy, Sustainability and the Environment

Field: Energy

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDGs: Responsible consumption and production, Clean water and sanitation

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $950